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| Two Choices! |
The more I read my Bible, the more I am reminded that in making spiritual decisions, there are really only two choices. We tend to think that there are many, which only confuses the process. Just as our hearts are divided between what is good and what is evil, what is Spirit and what is flesh, our daily choices only offer two real choices as well: God's way, and the way of the world. It seems to me that if we narrow it down to that every time, there is less opportunity to choose incorrectly. The enemy of our faith has less chance to influence us if we are able to narrow the choice list to "God's way" and "Every other way." By doing so we can more easily remove several possibilities that are "not the worst" choices, but bad choices none the same.
The people of Israel struggled, even as we still struggle, with being "whole-hearted" in their day to day lives. After being exiled to Babylon by their holy God who would not allow them to walk with a divided heart any longer, Israel lived in captivity for 70 years, the consequence for the choices they had made. After the 70 years, they were allowed to return to their country and rebuild the temple that stood in ruins. Even after the harsh judgment of God, and living in a distant country and culture where their God was not worshiped, Israel did not learn their lesson.
Upon returning to rebuild their "spiritual center," Israel returned as well to their sinful choices. Simply stated, they did not separate themselves from the world. Called to live as a holy race, Israel intermingled with the people, marrying them, and in a sense, marrying their gods and idols once again. They had been presented with two paths: The path of obedience, righteousness, and purity (God's way) and the path of disobedience, unrighteousness, and impurity. Israel took the wrong path.
The people of Israel are a picture of who we are. We, too, are presented with a "fork in the road," over and over again, in our spiritual journeys. Lest we think ourselves to have better discernment than the Israelites, wondering how they could fall into the same pattern after suffering such severe consequences, we ought to take a long look at our own choices. How well do we pick God's way over the way of the world, our flesh and Satan?
God has called us to "raise up the house of our God" (our hearts) and to restore its "ruins." (Ezra 9: 9) To do that we must begin to choose His path . . . and avoid the path of the world. What worldly ways should you be leaving behind in order to walk in obedience to God?
Everything IS a choice. We have no excuses. We either choose God or we don't. There is no gray area. And we cannot choose both. We are either walking on God's path or our own. I pray that I am on God's path for my life. I don't do so well finding my own way. I always end up lost (and in more ways than one).
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